Save the Radish!

[livius drusus]

Japan tries to save giant radish

The backstory

This unlikely drama started last summer in the town of Aoi, when residents noticed the radish pushing its way through the asphalt of a pavement.

Impressed by its perseverance, they named it Dokonjo Daikon, or the radish with fighting spirit.

Imagine their dismay then when one morning, they found the radish had been decapitated.

The news of its demise prompted an outpouring of sympathy across Japan, and the unknown assailant returned its severed head, from which the town council has been trying in vain to revive it.

I don't even like radishes, but I can't help but love that fighting spirit.

[Sock Puppet]

From the Dawn of Time we came, sprouting silently through the centuries. Struggling to reach the time of the Harvesting, when the few who remain will battle to the last. No one has ever known we were among you ...

Until now.

[livius drusus]

You don't scare me. I have chunks of guys like you in my stool. Literally.

[Leesifer]

Heh! I love radishes. I used to grow them myself.

A couple of years ago, I'd obviously forgotten to pick one and it grew, and grew, and grew. It start poking out of the ground and I had no clue what it was and was a bit scared to pull it up.

I overcame my fear and lo and behold there was a radish about 1½ times the size of a tennis ball.

[Legs]

[TomJoe]

Originally Posted by livius drusus

I have chunks of guys like you in my stool.

[freemonkey]

I love radishes. But I'm confused.... they say "giant" radish, and

the town council now wants to extract seeds or even DNA from its remains in the hope of producing offspring of similar fortitude.

but they don't say how giant it was. Was it a mutation, or is it just a species of radish that grows especially large? Or are they thinking that this particular radish has spunk, and that's what they want to perpetuate? I like a radish with spunk.

[livius drusus]

Originally Posted by freemonkey

Or are they thinking that this particular radish has spunk, and that's what they want to perpetuate?

Bingo.

I like a radish with spunk.

Ewwwwww!

[TomJoe]

Originally Posted by freemonkey

I like a radish with spunk.

[godfry n. glad]

Originally Posted by freemonkey

I love radishes. But I'm confused.... they say "giant" radish, and

but they don't say how giant it was. Was it a mutation, or is it just a species of radish that grows especially large? Or are they thinking that this particular radish has spunk, and that's what they want to perpetuate? I like a radish with spunk.

The Japanese Daikon radish is sizeable to begin with, hence it's "giant" status.

See here:



That's pretty standard size, which is much larger than the little red numbers we're most familiar with. The "dai" in "Daikon" means "great, large, best, foremost".

The Japanese slice and pickle them.